NASA
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Kona Storms Flood Oʻahu
Back-to-back low-pressure systems struck Hawaii in March 2026, delivering some of the worst flooding the state has seen in decades. The subtropical weather systems—called kona lows near Hawaii—siphoned moisture from the tropics, fueling slow-moving thunderstorms with torrential, destructive rains. The National Weather Service reported rainfall totals of 5 to 10 inches (13 to 26 centimeters) throughout the state between March 11 and 15, with some areas…
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NASA PC-12 Aircraft Makes Move to Support Flight Research Across Agency
A NASA Pilatus PC-12 aircraft will now be based at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, in order to support flight research efforts across the agency. The PC-12 was acquired in 2022 by NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland for use in advanced technology development. The PC-12 will continue to support research at NASA Glenn while also helping…
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Reminders of Where We’ve Been, Where We’re Going
Three Moon rocks are on display during a March 24, 2026, event where NASA announced a series of transformative agencywide initiatives designed to achieve the National Space Policy and advance American leadership in space. NASA leadership provided updates on mission priorities, including sending the first astronauts to the lunar surface in more than 50 years, establishing the initial elements of a permanent lunar…
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NASA X-Ray Mission Gets Fresh Look at 2,000-Year-Old Supernova
NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) mission has taken a new observation of a supernova, RCW 86, helping fill in a fuller picture of what other telescopes have observed. When astronomers using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory previously targeted RCW 86, they discovered that a large “cavity” region around the system led the supernova to expand more rapidly than expected. The…
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3 Ways Students Can Get Involved With Artemis
NASA’s Artemis program will establish a sustainable lunar presence, unlock new scientific discoveries, and develop technologies for spaceflight to Mars and beyond – and students can help shape this new era of space exploration. As America launches this new Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA and its partners offer exciting opportunities for students to get involved in the mission…
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What’s Up: April 2026 Skywatching Tips from NASA
Mercury shines extra bright, the Lyrid meteor shower peaks, and a comet soars into view Mercury shines at its brightest for the year, the Lyrid meteor shower peaks, and a bright new comet makes an appearance in April’s night sky. Skywatching Highlights April 3: Mercury at greatest elongation April 17: Best chance to see Comet C/2025 R3 April 21 to 22: Lyrid meteor…
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Optical Vortex Phase Masks for the Detection of Habitable Worlds
A team of NASA researchers is developing new types of optical masks that could help enable the many orders of magnitude of starlight suppression needed for future space observatories to pick out very faint habitable exoplanets from the far brighter glare of their stellar hosts. Artist’s conception of an exoplanet reflecting the light from its nearby star. NASA One of…
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NASA’s Water-Hunting Tool Will Help Scout Moon’s South Pole
NASA is joining international partners to hunt for ice on the Moon in support of future human exploration. The agency is providing a water-detecting instrument, the Neutron Spectrometer System (NSS), to the Lunar Polar Exploration (LUPEX) mission led by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation). The instrument, which detects ice under the lunar surface, will be installed on LUPEX’s lunar rover planned to arrive at the Moon no earlier than 2028. NASA’s support of LUPEX is part of an ongoing effort to identify and…
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NASA Research Proposes Technology to Seek Earth-Like Exoplanets
As NASA seeks to understand the mysteries of the universe, the agency is advancing technologies to locate and explore Earth-like planets far beyond our solar system. A key element of this research involves observing reflected light from exoplanets, which can reveal indicators of Earth-like features such as water and oxygen. However, detecting this faint reflected light with current telescope technology…
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NASA Unveils Initiatives to Achieve America’s National Space Policy
As part of its “Ignition” event on Tuesday, NASA announced a series of transformative agencywide initiatives designed to achieve President Donald J. Trump’s National Space Policy and advance American leadership in space. These actions reflect the urgency of the moment, but also the tremendous opportunity ahead for world-changing science and discovery. “NASA is committed to achieving the near‑impossible once again,…
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